As the saying goes, all good things must come to an end.
In this case, it’s about both my time at the Tribune Chronicle and The Vindicator and my time in journalism as a whole, as Thursday marked my finale at the paper.
I arrived in Warren back in 2021 with a reasonable idea of what to expect. After all, my then-girlfriend (and now wife as of last Saturday) grew up across the state line in Mercer County and we had made multiple trips over to various restaurants during our relationship.
I knew this was a blue-collar area that took a lot of pride in its identity. I knew it wasn’t so different from other towns I had worked in. And I knew it wouldn’t take me long to feel at home here.
What I didn’t realize was just how awesome the sports scene here is.
You see, at my previous jobs, the area teams were always good locally, but struggled once they got out of the general region and had to face teams in the state playoffs.
But here? State contenders on the regular.
That’s a lot of fun as a sportswriter, because the stories are more joyous, more interesting and, frankly, just better.
In my time here, we had two football state champions — Canfield and South Range — and plenty of other deep runs in football. We had runs to the state Final Four by the Springfield girls and Ursuline boys basketball teams. We’ve had Austintown Fitch softball repeat as state champs and Canfield capture its own state title this year. We also had West Branch baseball earn its first state championship. And we’ve had more individual state track and cross country champions than I can count.
And that’s all before getting into my time covering Youngstown State football and basketball. On the gridiron, the Penguins went 3-7 in my first year on the beat before turning it around for a 7-4 campaign a year later. Although they just missed the playoffs — and I would argue they were snubbed — it was clear YSU was beginning to see its identity come to fruition under Doug Phillips.
It also allowed me to cover my favorite athlete during my career (as far as on the job goes), Jaleel McLaughlin. Short in stature, his ferocious work ethic and blazing speed made him an on-field giant for YSU.
On the basketball court, I really enjoyed getting to cover some all-time greats both in terms of coaches and players. Highlights included YSU’s first Horizon League regular season title on the men’s side, as well as its debut in the NIT, and on the women’s side, the Penguins made the WNIT in my first season of coverage.
Players included the likes of Dwayne Cohill, Adrian Nelson, Garrett Covington and Michael Akuchie for the men, as well as program mainstay Chelsea Olson alongside Lilly Ritz, Megan Callahan and others on the women’s side.
The two coaching staffs I worked with — the men under Jerrod Calhoun and the women under John Barnes — were exemplary in terms of media relations, and I owe a huge thank you to both those coaches for letting me gain as much access as I did in order to provide the best coverage I possibly could.
It wasn’t always smooth, though. When readers took issue with something that was — or wasn’t — in the paper, we were sure to hear about it on our phones or in our email inboxes. While I didn’t always agree with the complaints, I did find it refreshing to see how engaged locals are with their newspapers. I hope that continues after I depart, but please, take it easy on your local journalists. They’re making huge personal sacrifices to try and bring you the news each day.
As for what’s next, I’m headed to Pittsburgh for a job outside the journalism field. As much fun as it’s been, my priorities in life have shifted greatly, and evenings spent in the newsroom or at games rather than with my wife simply weren’t what I wanted in the long run.
Before I go, though, there are lots of people to thank — too many to mention here, in fact. But I will make the effort to highlight a few folks.
First, thank you to Brenda Linert and Doug Chapin for bringing me aboard back in 2021. Thanks also to Greg Macafee, who was the sports editor I primarily worked under as a writer and then as the editor-in-chief I worked under the most when I was promoted to sports editor. Your confidence in me as a writer and your willingness to let me have the freedom to chase stories meant a lot.
Thanks also to Brian Yauger, Neel Madhavan and Preston Byers for your hard work each night, as well as all our correspondents who help round out what I would argue is pound-for-pound among the best sports departments you’ll find.
And thank you to everybody who helped make the Mahoning Valley a great place to call home for the last few years. Pittsburgh is only a short drive away, so you can be sure I’ll be back to visit, if only because I can’t go too long without eating at some of the great local restaurants here.
The Valley is a special place — a place I saw my writing career grow exponentially, where I got married, and where I’ve called home for three years. I can only hope my next chapter in Pittsburgh is as fulfilling as this one was.
Joel Whetzel can be reached by email at jmwwvu@gmail.com. Follow him on Twitter, formerly X, @JoelWhetzel.
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